5.  The applicant was born in 1956 and lives in Rzeszów.
6.  The applicant read law from 1981 to 1986. Subsequently, he did his four-year advocate training and in 1992 he began to practise as an advocate.
7.  The applicant submits that from 1984 onwards he had often gone abroad to visit his family and to work.
8.  On one occasion, after his return from abroad, the applicant met with his old colleague, W.C., who had offered his help in connection with a letter which had allegedly arrived from abroad and could have caused problems for the applicant. The applicant was not aware that W.C., who claimed to be working as a teacher, was in fact an officer of the Security Service (Służba Bezpieczeństwa).
9.  In spring 1987 the applicant became aware of that fact. He then threw W.C. out of his flat and cut off all contacts with him. There were three witnesses to that event, T.L., B.M. and M.S.
10.  On 11 April 1997 the parliament passed the Law on disclosing work for or service in the State's security services or collaboration with them between 1944 and 1990 by persons exercising public functions (ustawa o ujawnieniu pracy lub służby w organach bezpieczeństwa państwa lub współpracy z nimi w latach 1944-1990 osób pełniących funkcje publiczne) (the “1997 Lustration Act”). Persons falling under the provisions of the Lustration Act, i.e. candidates or holders of public office such as ministers and members of parliament, were required to declare whether or not they had worked for or collaborated with the security services during the communist regime. The provisions of the Act extended to, inter alia, judges, prosecutors and advocates.
11.  Following the entry into force of the 1997 Lustration Act the applicant declared that he had not been an intentional and secret collaborator of the communist-era security services.
12.  On an unspecified date in 2000 the Commissioner of Public Interest (Rzecznik Interesu Publicznego) applied to the Warsaw Court of Appeal to institute proceedings in the applicant's case on the grounds that he had lied in his lustration declaration by denying his collaboration with the security services. The Commissioner heard W.C. as a witness.
13.  On 30 May 2000 the Warsaw Court of Appeal instituted lustration proceedings in the applicant's case. On 5 June 2000 the applicant was informed that the lustration proceedings had been instituted and that he could consult the case file in the court.
14.  On 8 May 2001 the court held a hearing partly in camera. It examined some archived classified documents.
15.  On 16 June 2001 the court held a hearing partly in camera at which it examined the applicant's personal record (teczka osobowa). The applicant stated that he would not make any statements and would not answer any questions put to him by the court. He requested the court to call W.C. and M.R. as witnesses.
16.  The court held hearings in camera on 27 June, 25 September and 25 October 2001. Witness W.C. summoned by the court failed to appear.
17.  On 25 October 2001 the Warsaw Court of Appeal, acting as the first-instance lustration court, found that the applicant had been an intentional and secret collaborator with the Security Service and had therefore lied in his lustration declaration. The operative part of the judgment was served on the applicant on 20 December 2001. At the same time, the reasoning was considered “top secret” and, in accordance with Article 100 § 5 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, could only be consulted in the Court of Appeal's secret registry.
18.  On 3 January 2002 the applicant lodged an appeal. He argued that the Court of Appeal's judgment had been primarily based on the statements of W.C. who had not been heard by the court. The court had instead relied on the transcript of W.C.'s statements given before the Commissioner. Those statements had been given without the applicant or his lawyer being present. W.C. was an officer of the Security Service which had allegedly managed the applicant as a secret collaborator.
19.  On 16 May 2002 the Warsaw Court of Appeal held a hearing at which it heard W.C. as a witness. The court notified W.C. that the Head of the State Security Bureau (Urząd Ochrony Państwa) had discharged him from the obligation of confidentiality in respect of the subject matter of the proceedings.
20.  W.C. was heard again at the hearing held on 18 November 2003. The court refused the applicant's request to call two additional witnesses (M.S. and J.S.) on the ground that their evidence would not be relevant for the determination of the case.
21.  On 3 September 2004 the court held a hearing. It refused the applicant's request to call two further witnesses (B.M. and T.L.), considering their evidence irrelevant for the case.
22.  On 3 September 2004 the Warsaw Court of Appeal, acting as the second-instance lustration court, upheld the original decision. It appears that the judgment and its reasoning were served on the applicant.
23.  On 15 November 2004 the applicant lodged a cassation appeal with the Supreme Court. He submitted, inter alia, that the Court of Appeal had refused to call three crucial witnesses for the applicant whose evidence was to rebut the fact of his alleged collaboration with the security services. The applicant further submitted that the Court of Appeal had disregarded his arguments to the effect that his contacts with W.C. had been of a private nature. He submitted that his contacts with W.C. had not constituted secret and intentional collaboration. He also challenged the fact that he could not consult the file in the proceedings before the Commissioner or adduce any evidence at that stage of the proceedings.
24.  On 14 April 2005 the Supreme Court dismissed the applicant's cassation appeal. The applicant was served with the operative part of the judgment. The written reasoning was designated “secret” by the Supreme Court and the applicant could consult it at the Institute of National Remembrance (Instytut Pamięci Narodowej).
25.  On 19 May 2005 the President of the Court of Appeal, pursuant to the 1997 Lustration Act, ordered the publication in the Official Law Gazette (Monitor Polski) of the information that according to the Warsaw Court of Appeal's final judgment of 25 October 2001 the applicant had lied in his lustration declaration.
26.  Consequently, on 9 June 2005 the President of the Rzeszów Regional Bar Council issued a decision depriving the applicant of the right to practise as an advocate.
27.  On 11 November 2005 the applicant requested the President of the Republic of Poland to grant him a pardon. He was informed, however, that a pardon could only be granted in respect of a person who had been convicted of a criminal offence.